Coal-washer and ore-concentrator.



W/ TNE SSE S PATENTED SEPT.8, 1908. A. 0. CAMPBELL.

GOAL WASHER AND ORE CONCENTRATOR. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 4 1906.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

ATTORNEYS 171511010215 PETERS 0a., WASHINGTON, D. c.

110.8%,314. PATENTED SEPT. 8, 1908. A. 0. CAMPBELL.

GOAL WASHER AND ORE GONGENTRATOR.

APPLICATION FILE AUG. 4, 1906. HEETFBHEM 3| Z 7 v2: 2' l .5.

INVENTOH fliazzzo 6&779Q622 ATTORNEYS m1: NORRIS PEYERS ca. wAsmmncN. n.c.

ALONZO G. CAMPBELL, OF ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA.

COAL-WASHER AND ORE-CONGENTRATOR.

Specificationpf Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 8, 1908.

Applicatioufiled. August 4, 1906. Serial No. 329,241.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALoNZo C. CAMPBELL, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Asheville, in the county of Buncombe and State ofNorth Carolina, have invented a new and Improved Coal-Washer andOre-Concentrator, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

The invention relates to coal washers and ore concentrators, such asshown and described in Letters Patent of the United States, No. 695,790,granted to me March 18,

1902, and in the application for Letters Patent of the United States,Serial No. 228,705, filed by me on October 17, 1904.

The object of the present invention is to provide a new and improvedcoal washer and ore concentrator for readily separating and dischargingindividually the fine dense slimes of concentrates or of coal, the finegranular dense stuff, and the coarse and massive concentrates of ore orrefuse of coal, the arrangement of the parts being such that both apanning and jigging takes place conjointly and interchangeably.

The invention consists of novel features and parts and combinations ofthe same, which will be more fully described hereinafter and thenpointed out in the claims.

A practical embodiment of the invention is represented in theaccompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in whichsimilar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all theviews.

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of the improvement; Fig. 2 is anenlarged sectional side elevation of one form of the pan, the sectionbeing on the line 22 of Fig. 3; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the same; Fig.4 is an enlarged sectional side elevation of the same on the line 14 ofFig. 3; Fig. 5 is an enlarged transverse section of the an on the line55 of Fig. 2; Fig. 6 is a simi ar view of the same on the line 66 ofFig. 2; Fig. 7 is a like view of the same on the line 77 of Fig. 2;

connecting rod D with the upper end of a vibrating lever E carrying atits lower end a friction roller E engaging the cam groove F in the camwheel F attached to the main driving shaft G journaled in suitablebearings on the main frame A and connected by pulleys and belt or otherdevices with machinery for imparting a continuous rotary motion to thesaid shaft G.

The detailed construction of the vibrating lever E is approximately thesame as the one shown and described in the Letters Patent of the UnitedStates above referred to, so that further description of the same is notdeemed necessary.

The pan A is constructed in detail as follows, special reference beinghad to Figs. 2 to 7. The head block A previously mentioned forms part ofa longitudinally extending rib A supporting the bottom A of the pan, andwhich bottom A is preferably made of transverse slats terminating at thesides A connected at their lower ends by angle pieces A with the bottomA, as plainly indicated in Figs. 5, 6 and 7. The sides A are alsorigidly connected with each other at intervals by transverse beams Aforming parts of the slatted bottom A, as plainly indicated in Fig. 2.Within the pan A are arranged transversely extending perforated rifflesH, each having afstraight body portion H adapted to be fastened at itslower end and terminating at its upper end in upwardly and rear wardlycurved heads H attached at its end to a transverse rod H adjustablysecured in the sides A of the pan A by the use of suitable nuts andwashers H, as plainly indicated in the drawings, it being understoodthat each rod H is fitted to slide up and down in vertical slots Aformed in the sides A. The heads H have cut out portions H alternatelyon opposite sides, so as to form a zig zag passage for the material fromthe head of the pan to the tail end thereof.

In the upper portion of the bottom A of the pan A are producedtransverse openings forming seep cells I below the body H of acorresponding riffle H, and each seep cell I is closed on the top by aperforated plate I and its bottom I is formed by a plate havingrestricted outlet openings 1. Some of the riffies H have their bodies Hriveted or otherwise secured to the ends of the body H of the adjacentriffles, as plainly indicated in Fig. 2 and the left hand end of Fig. 4,and the uppermost rifile H of the said connected riffles is attachednear its head H to a barrier block J arranged on the upper face of thebottom A The lowermost rififle of the said connected riffles is attachedto the slatted bottom A and the said connected riffles are thus adistance above the upper surface of the bottom A to form a compactingpassage K provided at its upper end with an outlet K formed in thebottom A the outlet being closed at the under side by a valve K securedon spring arms K attached to the cross bar A, as will be'eadilyunderstood by reference to Figs. 2 an 4.

The material to be treated is placed into a hopper L mounted on theframe C, and hav-. ing an outlet spout L provided with a pivoted tilterL fordelivering the material to the pan A at or near the middle thereof.A water supply pipe N, connected with a suitable source of water, isprovided at its outlet with a spreader N, to distribute the water at thehead of the pan A. A portion of the water is alsoLpassed by branch pipesO to the hoper p When the machine is in operation the pan is oscillated.and receives a percussive action by the mechanism shown and described,and by this action of the pan a separation of the more dense stuff andthe less dense stuff in two layers takes place, the top layer beingfloated away by the escapingwater and is discharged over the tail end ofthe pan A and drops into a sluice P, while the lower layer or more densestuff (concentrates or the like) is discharged atIthe head of the pan Aand drops into a sluice Q. The reciprocating and percussive actionimparts an agitation to t e mass of stuff that is fed with water ontothe table. The mass thoroughly intermingled with water, classifies intovarious sizes and densities. There being plain and perforated areasconstituting the total working surface, theprocess is in part panning,and in part jigging, and these processes operate conjoint y andinterchangeably. The dense fines are urged by the percussive action, tothe head. The light fines, the coal or the gangue of ore, are ur ed, bythe natural flow of the water, to pass tiirough the perforations in theopposite direction, toward the tail. Water that is homogeneously loadedwith dense fines, will partake of the mechanical percussiveaction, andresist the down flow tendency of the water, since it seeks the lowestplaces, and by its excessive density, clings to the woodbottom, as adense fluid, where it accumulates and persistently advances toward thehead. It is an object to retard thetoo rapid advance of this fine densestuff, whether it is comacted or whether it be in the state of a iquidpulp. It is a further object to subject this accumulated mass to acontinuous and active process ofenrichment, that it may be thoroughlydisengaged from all lighter slimes or sludge that properly should gowith the tailings. The improved riflies and their grouping, are designedto retard the flow, and to shelter these dense fines that they may notescape with the tailings, and thus be lost.

The intermittent lurching of the mass pocketed by the deep rifiies,together with the buoyant effect of the water, that in part flows and inpart seeps through the perforations, and the porous mass, are the meansfor disengaging the sizes and densities, the coarse dense ridingimmediately on the perforated areas, the coarse light floating on thedense coarse, and the dense fine permeating the mass, and finallysettling upon the true bottom A As the true bottom is made up of jointedslats of 'wood it affords a clinging surface to the dense fines.

It will be observed that each individual riffle H, in general, has itslower margin close in contact with the true bottom and opening outtoward the head, the intention being that there can be no compacting offines under the riffles, or above the riflies, the water at all timeshaving its sufficient buoyant effect. The groups of connected rifflesare arranged to produce just the opposite effect, namely, to compact thedense fines,slimes, sludge, etc., the object being to impound thesematerials, and to be able to recover them in a compacted and greatlyenriched state. A barrier, J is interposed so that the percussive actioncannot clear the spaces under the con nected riffles, the mass thusbecoming compacted to any desirable degree, which is regulated by theadjustable spring valve K that must be opened by the compacting force.This compacting and enriching passage can further be gaged by itsvariable length.

The excessive fines are of that peculiar nature that they are toosensitive to excess of water and agitation that they cannot be retainedorenriched except by its exclusion in proper degree. In its morecompacted state the dense clings to itself, while the lighter fines areoozed out by well'directed agitation. There is another grade of finesthat must be provided for, that are more granular, and require the morebuoyant effect of water and agitation, yet, at the same time cannotfollow the excessive coarse dense to the head discharge. These fines arenot of a compacting nature, since the interstitial spaces are larger,and retain more water; they do not diffuse inwater like the slimesof-concentrates, however. Provision is made for this class of fines, inall its diflerent grades, by the use of the seep cells I, at variablestations, approaching the head of the table. The fines referred to arepersistently crowded out by compacting slimes, and cannot traverse thehead, so itnaturally falls between these two classes. The densestuffmakesits way into the cells I through the pervious covering 1 andmasses to a degree, and eventually escapes through the small hole 1having such capacity as the case demands. The cells I are at all timesfilled with water, which has a buoyant effect, and gages the flow orseepage of the class of stuff that naturally gravitates to its place ofdischarge; When all the grades of dense fines have thus been removed,there is left only the coarse dense stuff that is constrained to followthe maze of riffles in a long circuitous zig zag course to the onerestricted port of escape.

Having thus described the process as pertaining to the concentrates, Iwill now describe the course of the tailings,coal or gangue. The lightermaterials, both coarse and fine, partaking of the flow of the water,keep to the surface, and in large degree, overflow the riffies. Theheavier portions follow the maze of rifiies to the port of discharge atthe tail. Much of the fine stuff flows through the perforations, and, ingeneral, follows the water in its many passages to the tail.

The appliances in this invention are to re.

tard, in very great degree, and in that prolonged period of time, tocontinuously and effectuously work the total mass of concentrates tillevery trace of coal or of gangue has been crowded out and replaced bymore dense material. The means to this end are,

First: the excessively high barrier riflies, so high, that only at thefeed, can there be any overflow. The purpose is to'turn the flow intothe maze or zigzag passage as effectually as possible, and to give suchrestricted lateral passage, and such size and height of port as willgive a safe harbor for the constantly accumulating concentrates.

Second: the riffles are so disposed individually that the percussiveaction shall have a clearance effect in contradistinction to thecompacting effect, except in the specially devised compacting passagesK, with the purpose to discharge the compacted mass as a finishedproduct. The mass of stufi in the sheltered space that is closed on onemargin, is lurched forward by the percussive action, and there is avacuous space behind, and nothing to fill in but the seepage through theperforated shelter. This affords a retarding as well as a clearanceeffect. This clearance is very effective, in that the mass of fine stuffnever loses its mobility,is always sufficiently tempered with water thatthe enrichment may go on. At the instant of the reverse motion, the masswill lurch forward in slight degree, the effect being to force the waterback through the perforations, and carry with it the lighter materialsthat have been disengaged from the concentrate. This process varies inslight degree, and takes effect on different classes of materials, asthe latter pass from one riffle to another, next in order. Even the lastriffies, nearing the tail, hold a mass of dense material of fines, andthey are exceedingly sensitive to water and agitation, and, in general,are, too intermixed to undertake to save at once, yet much that iscaught and massed at these last riffles finally reaches the moreadvanced riffles, eventually discharging at the first compactingstation. The bed of overlying stuff is much deeper nearing the tail,which favors the gathering of the more sensitive fines.

Third: the barrier riflies and the restricted ports exercise such aretarding effect on the advancing concentrate, that the pan can be moreelevated at the tail, thus giving the minimum inclination or fall. Thisleveling up is very helpful in that the fiow of the wa ter and itscarrying efi'ect is greatly reduced, and there is a larger yield ofconcentrates or refuse of coal. Again, these conditions favor a greatreduction of water at the head, since it is held to do its maximum ofservice, in its progressive flow through the perforations and by wayof'the circuitous maze and alternating marginal ports. In the practiceheretofore the inclination of the pan and the volume and the force ofthe head-water were gaged by the character of the headings, which,invariably, carried too much coal, or gangue of ore, that could not bekept back except by this excessive violence of action.

Fourth: the seep cells with their volume of water and pervious coveringconstitute a further selective process that serves as intermediarystations for the discharge of that class of densities that cannot findexit either at the compacting stations or at the head discharge. Thesecells operate selectively also upon the stuif that falls to them. Thebody of Water that fills the cells, lurches to and fro and gives apanning effect on the bottom, and a jigging effect on the pervious areaabove, and each individual cell has its own most fitting classifiedproduct, and the multiple cells cooperate to bring this most favorablecondition about.

In the process of panning, the material masses in such a way that thevery finest and most dense settles through the coarse materials andmasses at the bottom, where it fills the interstitial spaces of thecoarser grades. If there is but a small proportion of this accumulationof fines, it cannot hold its place there, under the effect of excessivewater and agitation but if it is sheltered and in every way protectedfrom the violence, then it will accumulate and assert itself, drivingout or buoying up the coarser grains, so they have no footing whatever.The liquid dense pulp acts as a dense fluid, like mercury, and is aperfect barrier to the settling of the coarser grains even though theybe most dense. Thus the finer dense pulp or slime of ore has the firstchoice of compacting, and the finer dense granular has the second ofmassing,

and so on, in the order of the increasing size of the grains, and thereare adequate provisions at the series of stations for their exit at theopportune time. The remaining coarser dense material must needs seekrefuge by the circuitous maze and discharge at the head, being mostcompletely filched of all that is fine or buoyant.

' Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent:

1. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, and means foroscillating the pan and imparting percussive action to the same, thesaid pan being provided with inclined perforated transverse riffieshaving upwardly extending heads, said riflles being secured at one endto the bottom of the pan and having their heads provided with cut outportions located alternately in opposite ends of succeeding rifl'les toform a ziz-zag passage in the pan.

2. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan and means forimparting a percussive action to the same, the said pan havingperforated transverse riflles fixedly secured at their lower ends to thebottom of the pan and inclining upwardly and forwardly and provided withcurved heads having cut out portions located alternately at oppositeends of succeeding riffles to form zigzag restricted regurgitatingpassages in the pan.

3. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, means foroscillating the pan and imparting a percussive action to the same, thesaid pan having transverse perforated rifiies having their lower endsfixed to the bottom of the pan and having their upper ends in the formof upwardly and rearwardly curved heads, and means for raising andlowering the said heads.

4. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, means foroscillating the pan and imparting a percussive action to the same, thesaid pan having transverse perforated riffles having their lower endsfixed to the bottom of the pan and having their upper ends in the formof upwardly and rearwardly curved heads, each head having a rodextending through elongated slots in the sides of the pan, and nuts andwashers for receiving the terminals of each rod to the sides of the pan.

5. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, and means foroscillating the pan and imparting a percussive action to the same, thesaid pan having transverse perforated rifiles fixedly secured at thelower ends to the bottom of the pan and inclining upwardly andforwardly, said pan also having interlocked barrier rifiies, atintervals, forming with the bottom of the pan a percussive compactingpassage.

6. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, and means foroscillating the pan and imparting a percussive action to the same, thesaid pan having transverse perforated rifiles fixedly secured at thelower ends to the bottom of the pan and inclining upwardly andforwardly, sundry of the rifl les at intervalsbeing connected togetherand forming impounding and compacting passages in a resulting directionto the force of the impact, and having a discharge port.

7. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, and means foroscillating the pan and imparting a percussive action to the same, thesaid pan having perforated transverse riffles fixedly secured at thelower ends to the bottom of the pan and inclining forwardly andupwardly, said pan also hav ing interlocked barrier riffles forming acom pacting and enriching assagein a resultant direction to the force ofthe impact and having a resistant discharge port at the head of thepassage.

8. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, and means foroscillating the pan and imparting a percussive action to the same, thesaid pan having perforated transverse riflles fixedly secured at thelower ends of the bottom of the pan and inclining forwardly andupwardly, the said pan also having interlocked barrier riffles forforming a covered percussive compacting passage, a barrier block at thehead of the compacting passage, and a discharge valve at the head, saidvalve being actuated by the inertia of the compacted mass, a passagebeing arranged at intervals in the pan alternately with the first namedriffles.

9. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, transverseperforated riflies having curved heads, said rlflies being secured tothe bottom of the pan and inclining upwardly and forwardly, and meansfor oscillating the pan and imparting a percussive action to the same,the said pan having a seep cell provided with a cover finely andsparsely perforated. and having restricted discharge at the bottom, thecell extending transversely from one side of the pan to the other.

10. A machine of the class described, provided with a pan, and means foroscillating the pan and imparting a percussive action to the same, thesaid pan having transverse perforated rifiles fixedly secured at thelower ends to the bottom of the pan and inclining forwardly andupwardly, erforated rifiies in the pan, sundry of the riflfes beingconnected together to form with the bottom of the pan compactingpassages at broken intervals in the lower half of the pan, the said panhaving discharge ports for the passages and seep cells at intervals atthe upper half of the pan, the cells being provided with finelyperforated covers and a restricted discharge, forming a shallow Waterspace between them.

11. In a machine of the class described, a pan, means for oscillatingthe pan and imparting a percussive action to the same, a transversebarrier on the bottom of the pan, and perforated rifles in the pan,sundry of the rifles being connected together and secured to the barrierand bottom of the pan and forming therewith a compacting passage havinga discharge port at its upper end.

12. In a machine of the class described, a pan, means for oscillatingthe pan and im parting a percussive action to the same, a transversebarrier on the bottom of the pan, transverse perforated rifles in thepan,

sundry of the rifles being connected together and secured to the barrierand the bottom of the pan and forming therewith a compacting passagehaving a discharge port at its upper end, and a spring supported valvefor said port 13. In a machine of the class described, a

pan having seep openings, means for oscillating the pan and lmparting apercussive action to the-same, a series of perforated rifles havingtheir lower ends secured to the bottom of the pan and inclined upwardlyand forwardly, a transverse barrier in the bottom of the pan, and asecond series of perforated and connected rifles, one of the riflesbeing secured to the bottom of the pan and another to the barrierforming with the barrier and the bottom of the pan a compacting passagehaving a discharge port and a spring actuated valve controlling saidport.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

ALONZO C. CAMPBELL.

Witnesses:

DAVID T. JARRETT, CHARLOTTE RILsON.

